The Memoirs of Cleopatra

The Memoirs of Cleopatra Bestselling novelist Margaret George brings to life the glittering kingdom of Cleopatra Queen of the Nile in this lush sweeping and richly detailed saga Told in Cleopatra s own voice this is a me

Title: The Memoirs of Cleopatra

Author: Margaret George

ISBN: 9780330353823

Page: 129

Format: Paperback

Bestselling novelist Margaret George brings to life the glittering kingdom of Cleopatra, Queen of the Nile, in this lush, sweeping, and richly detailed saga Told in Cleopatra s own voice, this is a mesmerizing tale of ambition, passion, and betrayal, which begins when the twenty year old queen seeks out the most powerful man in the world, Julius Caesar, and does not end uBestselling novelist Margaret George brings to life the glittering kingdom of Cleopatra, Queen of the Nile, in this lush, sweeping, and richly detailed saga Told in Cleopatra s own voice, this is a mesmerizing tale of ambition, passion, and betrayal, which begins when the twenty year old queen seeks out the most powerful man in the world, Julius Caesar, and does not end until, having survived the assassination of Caesar and the defeat of the second man she loves, Marc Antony, she plots her own death rather than be paraded in triumph through the streets of Rome Most of all, in its richness and authenticity, it is an irresistible story that reveals why Margaret George s work has been widely acclaimed as the best kind of historical novel, one the reader can t wait to get lost in.

The Memoirs of Cleopatra ¦ Margaret George

Margaret George129Margaret George

Title: The Memoirs of Cleopatra ¦ Margaret George
Posted by:Margaret George
Published :2019-06-11T13:08:12+00:00

About “Margaret George”

Margaret George

Margaret George is a rolling stone who has lived in many places, beginning her traveling at the age of four when her father joined the U.S diplomatic service and was posted to a consulate in Taiwan The family traveled on a freighter named after Ulysses son Telemachus that took thirty days to reach Taiwan, where they spent two years Following that they lived in Tel Aviv right after the 1948 war, when it was relatively quiet , Bonn and Berlin during the spy and Cold War days before returning at the height of Elvis mania to Washington DC, where Margaret went to high school Margaret s first piece of published writing, at the age of thirteen, was a letter to TIME Magazine defending Elvis against his detractors Margaret has since been to Graceland But it was earlier in Israel that Margaret, an avid reader, began writing novels to amuse herself when she ran out of books to read Interestingly, the subject of these was not what lay around her in the Middle East, but the American west, which she had never set foot in Now that she lives in the American Midwest she writes about the Middle East Clearly writing in her case followed Emily Dickinson s observation There is no frigate like a book and she used it to go to faraway places Now she has added another dimension to that travel by specializing in visiting times remote from herself.Neither of these horse sagas got published, but the ten year old author received an encouraging note from an editor at Grosset Dunlap, telling her she had a budding talent but should work on her spelling.It was also in Israel that Margaret started keeping land tortoises as pets, an interest which she still follows today She had a great affinity for animals and nature and that led her to a double major at Tufts University in English literature and biology Following that she received an MA in ecology from Stanford University one of the earliest departments to offer such a concentration Today she is active in environmental and animal conservation groups.Combining her interests led her to a position as a science writer at the National Cancer Institute National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland for four years.Her marriage at the end of that time meant moving, first to St Louis, then to Uppsala, Sweden, and then to Madison, Wisconsin, where she and her husband Paul have lived for than twenty years now They have one grown daughter who lives in California and is in graduate school.Through all this Margaret continued to write, albeit slowly and always on only one project at a time She wrote what she refers to as her Ayn Rand adventure novel in college and her Sex and the City novel in Washington DC It was in St Louis that she suddenly got the idea of writing a psycho biography of Henry VIII She had never seen such a thing done but became convinced the king was a victim of bad PR and she should rescue his good name Her background in science meant that only after thoroughly researching the literature and scholarship on Henry VIII would she embark on the novel itself She sought the guidance of a Tudor historian at Washington University for a reading list, and proceeded from there.It was actually fourteen years between her initial idea and the publication of The Autobiography of Henry VIII The book made an impression for several reasons first, because no one had ever written a novel sympathetic to the king before second, because it covered his entire life from before birth until after his death, making it almost a thousand pages long, and third, because it was so fact filled.

589 thoughts on “The Memoirs of Cleopatra”

Wow, I can't believe this book is overI feel a sense of accomplishment for having finished it (it's really, really long) and a sense of loss that it's over. The writing is so beautiful and real that it isn't a stretch at all to imagine that Cleopatra wrote it herself. There are so many incredible sentences in this book I could write page after page of quotes. Some of my favorites: "Always carry a limited gold service with you, was my motto." and "When fate offers you no choice you must appear to [...]

Arghis book needed a good editor. As with all of George's books, I get about half way in and begin to lose interest. While the historical detail is wonderful, it took the author 4 pages to say that Cleopatra took a swim.Started the book in Egypt in December and had to put it down for a while.

This book was a tradition for me to read each summer. I relished school getting out and lounging in the pool, day by day, and reading through these pages. It took the whole summer to read, too, because this book is a monster.After graduating college, I stopped reading this book every summer. But I still pick it up time to time and read my favorite passages.If you have any interest at all in Queen Cleopatra, you will love this book. However, if you're like me, after reading this book any other bo [...]

This is my car bookwhat is a car book? The book I keep in my car for those occasions such as appointments, waiting or dining out alone, when I want a book to read. I have owned this book since November of 2006 and I am only, maybe, halfway through itbut I have loved savoring it in these short bursts. I have often thought of pulling it out of the car and reading it full stop, but then I think it would spoil the fun.I love this book! First career was as an archaeologist, so I LOVE all the tiny det [...]

We use what we have, and I have been blessed indeed by what fate has send my way.This was an amazing book about an extraordinary woman. I am intimidated by big books (this one was almost 1200 pages), as I am always scared that I'll get bored halfway through. This was definitely not a problem with The Memoirs of Cleopatra. I walked away feeling that I knew Cleopatra, Caesar, Marc Anthony, and that I had walked the streets of Alexandria and Rome. The author writes beautifully, and I really appreci [...]

I wouldn’t have thought it possible to make the reign of Queen Cleopatra dull, but that’s exactly what Margaret George has achieved in The Memoirs of Cleopatra, a 900+ page hair-puller of a novel. Books like this make me wish I wasn’t a Finisher. I wish I had mastered the art of abandoning a novel halfway through, but, alas, once I start a book, I’m committed.Not that Memoirs is a total loss. I set out to read it wanting to learn more about Queen Cleopatra’s reign and I’ve certainly [...]

I tried my best, I really did. Made it to 300 pages out of 1063. I just can't waste any more of my time into a book that reads like a 15-year-old's school essay about Cleopatra VII. It was obviously well researched, and the first page promised a lot. I love verbose descriptions when they're done well, but George's bulky and awkward sentences made me want to tear my hair off and stick scarabs into my eyes. Quite heartbreaking actually, because I had such enormous expectations based on the GR rati [...]

Whew! What a long book. This was my first foray into anything Cleopatran and I thought it was well worth it. I like long books, but this one was almost too long for me. Especially the last third of the book became very repetitive. How many times can she pine over Antony and worry about her children inheriting an Empire without sounding droll? Then again, it probably was an agonizing time of waiting for her - no emails or cell phone or AP newswire in those days to keep you informed.I really got a [...]

But still a very good read. Very well written and researched story about an incredibly fascinating, intelligent, courageous and loving woman, a brilliant politician, but above all that a Queen. There are times when the book drags on a bit, with long descriptions of feasts, the court and court life and the business of running the country, but when she met up with Caesar (sp?) and then again with Marc Anthony things really started to cook, especially the final heartbreaking moments at the end. The [...]

For my complete review, visit my blog: alivrouvert.tumblr/post/91Can we give more than 5 stars to a book? was the first thing I thought when I finished this wonderfully-written book. During half a month, The Memoirs of Cleopatra by [author: Margaret George) made me travel in different places like Ancient Rome, Alexandria (Egypt) and even Nubia and gave me the opportunity to encounter Cleopatra (of course), Caesar, Marc Antony… Written in the first person like an autobiography, we follow the fa [...]

5 Stars +This is beyond so far beyond most books that 5 stars isn't nearly enoughIn a class by itself, I fell in love with Cleopatra and learned more ancient history than I did in school. Truly extraordinary. Margaret George is THE FINEST AUTHOR of historical fiction. I wasn't even interested in Cleopatra, but George opened my eyes to a true goddess on earth. The research George did for the book is unbelievable, but it is placed so seamlessly into the story that you hardly realize what it took t [...]

Well, I gave this my best shot. I wanted to love this book, but at 28% I'm setting it aside. It just doesn't have much action. When it does I enjoyed it, but it is primarily long-winded descriptions of the environment. I like learning about these things, but I learn fast. When it goes on and on I find myself getting bored or even falling asleep. I've had several friends rave about this book and so out of respect to them I tried to carry on as long as I could. I'm just not having fun with it at t [...]

I just loved this huge book. It took over my life for a month. Cleopatra narrates her life story from a young princess to her rise as the notorious Queen of Egypt. This book is truly an epic. The details, descriptions, scandals and characters are vivid and staggering.Egypt and the Roman Empire are characters in their own right. It’s been a whirlwind history lesson and has left me wanting to learn more about the Roman Empire and its movers and shakers. It’s a book that completely consumes you [...]

Margaret George has done it again! Just as she did in The Autobiography of Henry VIII, Margaret George has given an utterly realistic voice to a famous historical figure, while remaining true to the facts contained in whatever documented sources are available.Many other novels about Cleopatra focus only on her affairs with Julius Caesar and Marc Antony. Many of them also repeat the myths and inaccurate stories about her that grew out of Roman propaganda. Books like these usually ignore the facts [...]

WOW, this book truly feels like an accomplishment to complete. My edition totalled 1137 pages, which probably makes it the largest book I have ever read. I'm also sad that it's actually over too, as it was a surprisingly engrossing read. I think my enjoyment of this novel was helped out by the fact that I knew very little of Cleopatra's life before reading, I knew of the basics of course. Her affairs with Caesar and Anthony, and her chosen form of death, but other than that I was completely igno [...]

Finally finished! it took me more than 2 weeks to read this, I feel a mix of relief and accomplishment in moving the longest books from my TBR into the read folder. I think that Cleopatra characterization was a bit off, in this novel, she seems to be moved almost exclusively by romantic passion, often complaining and sulking. Her portrayal is far from the calculating and shrewd ruler I was expecting. She was an intelligent and learned woman able to hold her enemies (both internal and external) a [...]

This was a very, very long book, but a great one. My favorite type of book to read (historical novel) and this author is my all time favorite in this genre. I read two others by this author and loved those also.This kind of book isn't for everyone but I love to learn about history with the story of the character to go along.Cleopatra was a big story to tell and the author told from Cleopatra's POV. This made it very personal throughout the book and so I was inside the story the whole time. Like [...]

Great read, a page-turner. I thought that 900 pgs of historical fiction would make me gag, but the plot was well-developed, the story tight, and the writing good. A great love story written as if from Cleopatra herself.

The Queen of Egypt, speaking in a unique voice expressing unexpected thoughts…I’d admit that I put off reading this novel for the longest time—its thickness was an excuse I harped on, fearing that I might get bored with the story without even reaching the half of it (despite reviews to the contrary).Of course, I realized the foolishness of this sentiment soon enough when I found myself staying up well into the hours of the night, turning page after page, losing myself in the grandiosity an [...]

I did it! I finished the bloody book.And I give it more like 2.5 stars because it was ok and I liked it every now and then.But most of the times I disliked its length. There were too many pages for the smallest of things. I felt them creeping at me.Then again, what I found most appealing was Cleopatra's portrayal. She is not some evil, man-eating seductress. Actually, she has only 2 lovers during her lifetime in Memoirs of Cleopatra.Anyway, I'm just glad it's over!

Margaret George has a way with words. This is my first MG book and what a book to start with! I confess, it took me a while to get into it, though I appreciated what I read I was not pulled in. The book is a staggering 956 pages (if you don't include th authors notes etc.) and while the book read like poetry at times it also got tedious in the explanations of things; such is history though. Though I know that Julius Caesar and Cleopatra's relationship is very much more romantic in the book than [...]

The first 800 pages were fantastically engaging and I plowed through them in less time than it normally takes me to read several books. Caesar's assination, as described, was quite underwhelming, but Cleopatra's agony at Antony's death more than makes up for it. The last 160 were quite a slog, and the descriptions of Antony's doldrums following the seige of Actium, especially when read in the heat of summer, were truly grueling.I learned that stealing from my mom is a good thing, else I never wo [...]

This is one of the best gooks I've ever read. Ridiculously long, but one I never wanted to end. It currently resides at Uncle Norman's house in Ka'a'ava, Oahu, HI. If I ever want it back, I'll probably have to travel there to get it. If you have ANY interest in history, Egyptology, or romance, READ THIS!! Margaret George does a ton of reasearch, takes fact, and turns it into GREAT fiction! This is my #1 Margaret George novel.

I will also do a video review here at my channel: youtube/magicofbooks"The Memoirs of Cleopatra" by Margaret George is an historical fiction account of the life of one of Egypt's most famous queens. Cleopatra tells her story, beginning with the tenuous rule of her father, the betrayal of her sisters, and her own exile as she waits to take back the throne. Her savior is Julius Caesar, Rome's greatest general, and she finds herself falling in love with this powerful man. It's after Caesar's assass [...]

This book literally took me a year to read it all haha. At the time I could read so much because the print was small, the pages long and plus it was over 900 pages and had to read other books along with it. (Also it was my junior year so it had been a year for me becoming an avid reader). So good thing I had owned it at the time. Books I own like that or a non fiction of some type I call "pick up once in awhile" and I don't care how long I take on it. Just as long as I read it. Anywho, this book [...]

Jeez, this is a boring book! While I appreciate all historical detail, must the narrator really use characters with personality of a soap dish? While scroupulously relaying details of each event to us, Margaret George creates something that lacks flow and motion. She brings in dozens of under-developed characters without giving us as much as what they look like, yet then plugs in random characters (such as Cicero attending a party) with full description of look, speech and background - yet that [...]

On page 244: This book is fantastic! The beauty of Egypt and Cleopatra and the strength of Caesar and Rome are breathtaking at times. This is my second book by Margaret George and I know it won't be my last.